Task Packets

A task packet is the normalized representation the router uses to compare tasks across harnesses, repositories, and model providers.

This is an internal normalized representation, not the request body for either @hokusai/router or the direct REST API. Most integrations send their native task plus routing constraints and let the SDK or service derive the descriptor. See Router Contracts for the four distinct public and internal shapes.

Why Task Packets Exist

Raw task text is not enough for reliable routing. The same user request can have different routing requirements depending on language, repository maturity, risk, available models, budget, and evaluation method.

Task packets make those details explicit so the choice layer can compare the current task with historical outcomes.

Normalized descriptor fields

Field	Description
task_type	Bug fix, feature, refactor, infra, tests, migration, docs, or unknown
language	Python, TypeScript, JavaScript, Go, Rust, Java, Bash, multi, or unknown
domain	Backend, frontend, fullstack, devops, data, ML, mobile, or unknown
complexity	Numeric implementation difficulty
repo_size_bucket	Stable repository-size category
files_touched_bucket	Stable changed-file-count category
description_length_bucket	Short, medium, or long task description
is_greenfield	Whether the task starts a new system or component
is_migration	Whether the task is a migration
requires_tests	Whether the task requires test work
cross_service	Whether the task crosses service boundaries
ui_heavy	Whether UI work dominates the task
risk_level	Low, medium, or high risk

Example

{
  "task_type": "refactor",
  "language": "typescript",
  "domain": "backend",
  "complexity": 6,
  "repo_size_bucket": "medium",
  "files_touched_bucket": "2_5",
  "description_length_bucket": "medium",
  "is_greenfield": false,
  "is_migration": false,
  "requires_tests": true,
  "cross_service": false,
  "ui_heavy": false,
  "risk_level": "medium"
}

Budget, latency, and available-model constraints shape the routing decision but are not fields in this descriptor. They remain separate routing inputs.

Normalization Rules

Task packet generation should preserve the task's routing-relevant meaning while avoiding harness-specific noise.

• Keep model-agnostic task attributes separate from routing constraints and harness execution details.
• Supply budget and availability constraints through the SDK or REST routing input.
• Prefer stable categories over one-off labels.
• Redact secrets, customer identifiers, and unnecessary repository content.
• Include enough metadata to reproduce the routing decision later.

Generalizing Across Harnesses

A Wavemill task, an OpenHands task, a Claude Code session, and a custom internal issue can all produce comparable packets if they normalize to the same concepts: what work is being done, where it happens, how risky it is, what models are available, and how success will be measured.

That portability is what lets Hokusai learn routing behavior across many execution environments without requiring every integration to expose the same native task object.